Guillaume Large was born in Pouilly-Fuissé in Burgundy, France, and came of age working in his family vineyard, and observed how the great wine producers in the area transformed grapes into wines bearing the region’s appellation. Some oenophiles may assume his becoming a winemaker was an inevitability.
However, he worked his way up, earning his Oenologist’s National Diploma from the Jules Guyot Institute of Dijon and solidifying his credentials the old-fashioned way—hands-on.
Large’s efforts eventually got the attention of Pierre-Henry Gagey and Jacques Lardière of legendary producer Maison Louis Jadot, established in 1859. After several years of serving as Louis Jadot’s Assistant Technical Director, they felt his potential and initiative made him the right person to oversee its first major winery outside France. The challenge suited the young winemaker well, as he had always wanted to see what would happen when the time-honored techniques of historic Burgundian estates were combined with modern technology.
In 2013, Résonance Estate (resonancewines.com) was founded to bring together the best of two worlds. At the end of 2017, Large was tapped to set down professional roots in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, and by 2018, set down personal roots with his wife and son. While the U.S. production region is firmly established in the “New World,” Large was excited about this venture, well aware of the great affinity between his native Burgundy and Willamette Valley wine production regions based on terroir, climates, and sun exposure.
Like the internationally acclaimed wines produced at Résonance Estate, the winery came together as a destination in a way that required patience but produced superb results. In 2024, it encompasses 140 acres of vineyards (including Résonance, Jolie Mont, Koosah, and Découvert), The Carlton Grand Tasting Room, and the Dundee Hills Tasting Salon adjoining the Découvert Vineyard.
Moving into the future, Large promises more sublime additions to the winery that unites the best of French and American winemaking. Although Large travels the world to promote his internationally acclaimed wines and regularly visits his family back in France, he is truly in his element in the heart of Oregon wine country, always working on expanding his definition of what makes a good Pinot Noir or Chardonnay.
“You will always adapt yourself to try to produce the most beautiful fruit that you can. And if you have beautiful fruits, it’s easy,” Large explains. “You can make a wine that will speak about the place. You know…this is our goal and our job. This is why we are paid to try to find the best way to farm, the best way to produce beautiful fruits. The sedimentary soils of the region also inform the distinctive character of the wines.”
Millennium: How did you go about getting the right education and credentials to enter the industry?
Guillaume Large: My maternal great-grandfather planted a vineyard, and this allowed me to grow up around this experience. At harvest time, children helped their families harvest the fruit on the family farms and vineyards. Because of this, I was always connected with wine. However, back then, I never imagined working in the wine industry.
As I wanted to have a career with a link to history, I initially decided to become an officer in the French army and graduated from Université Jean Moulin with a bachelor’s degree in public law. However, I left the army as things didn’t work out. I then went on to work for a year with a chef de cuisine at a vineyard. While I spent a lot of time working in the wine cellar, I learned about farming and winemaking techniques.
I decided to return to school, this time earning a bachelor’s degree in viticulture and enology from CFPPA Mâcon Davayé in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté and following that, an Oenologist’s National Diploma at the Jules Guyot Institute in Dijon at Université de Bourgogne.
What is most satisfying about working in an American wine production area with your French background?
Large: Even as recent as 40 years ago, the French, Italian, and other old-world producers were dismissive of American wines, but this has changed. I love my memories of Burgundy because it is where I grew up and first got to know viticulture. You can feel the traditions around you…the heritage and generations of winemakers coming before our generation. However, in France, there are still rules to follow, and (winemakers) cannot do whatever they want, especially as wine appellations carry so much weight. In the Willamette Valley, there’s a freedom to innovate and introduce techniques to get the best out of our vineyards to get results that link the old ways to the new.
What sets the Willamette Valley apart from other wine-production regions in North America?
Large: Even with our Burgundian roots, the wines truly reflect Oregon’s terrain, and we love it! We have unique vineyards because of several terroir conditions specific to Oregon. During the winter and spring, the abundance of moisture and precipitation allows moss to grow on the trunks of the vines and lingers through the summer. In Burgundy, you don’t see that, even with the same (grape) varietals. Because of the microclimates and the mountains, we don’t need to irrigate the way vineyards in Burgundy need to be irrigated. We are also proud of the fact we farm and do everything else organically, with no chemicals or herbicides.
How would you describe the process of bringing Résonance wines to life, as compared to winemaking in France?
I think of winemaking in France and other old-world wine production areas as following a recipe to guarantee the final product will fit denomination standards and, therefore, be something of quality. Here, you do the opposite to accomplish a great wine. You plant what you want, how you want, and try different approaches and experimentation. As we respect old traditions but apply new techniques and technologies, we do it with the notion that the ultimate judges are our customers.
As we try to be proactive, we always keep our eye on the vineyard’s condition to determine what kinds of things we can do with a given harvest or varietal. Should we adjust the way we irrigate the fields slightly? Perhaps keep a little bit of the grape stem (in place) when doing maceration? While (experiments like this) don’t work well in Burgundy, we’ve had success here in developing new expressions of varietals people like.
How do you keep a balance between your family life and work?
Large: Travel is a big part of it. When I go to (wine conferences, sales trips, market visits, etc.), my wife and son will sometimes join me at the end of the trip. At other times, my wife will join me at a wine event and will help me pour and present our wines. When we go to Santa Barbara at the Ritz Carlton for the “World of Pinot Noir” or on Nantucket Island for its annual wine and food festival, it may be a business trip, but it’s always an adventure. It’s like going on a cruise, where there are some cities we like more than others, but it gives us a sense of what’s out there.
My wife is a tax attorney, and while she had to learn new laws and regulations to practice in the United States, she is still very active in her career because she can work as a digital nomad or from home. That said, as a family, we love relaxing and entertaining at home, as it is part of the French way of life. It’s a part of us and part of our personal link with Résonance.
Have you gotten any interesting reactions from some of your peers in France beyond the French team (Jacques Lardière, Pierre-Henry Gagey, and his son, Thibault Gagey, who serves as the director of operations) at Résonance?
Large: That’s a very good question, and while I don’t have a response to it yet, I think doing blind tastings of our wines in France will have some interesting results. I figured that even if we are not selling in Europe, we may get some very interesting reactions to what we’re doing in the Willamette Valley. Tastings in France may provide interesting insight some more insight into how you can add more European elements to the products while still taking advantage of new world situations like the land and the technology.
In addition to the winery and the website, where can one purchase Résonance wines, in the U.S.?
Large: We are distributed by Kobrand and can be found at retailers in most parts of the U.S. While we are focused on maintaining our quality standards, we don’t want to grow too quickly. We built a strategy to grow but with the long-term in mind. If we see an opportunity that makes sense, we will work with Kobrand and visit markets that may be of interest to see what we do, how we do it, and what results will be a good fit.
